The American Swedish Institute

Porcelain stoves, paper cuttings, and a pantry

By: Lydia Tallarini

Any castle in Minneapolis is bound to be interesting—and the Turnblad Mansion, completed in 1908, does not disappoint. The ornate yet not overly ostentatious building houses part of the American Swedish Institute, a museum dedicated to promoting the stories of Swedish influences in America.

The entrance to the Institute is actually through an attached building whose starkly plain lines complement the mansion surprisingly well. After passing by the gift shop, the restaurant, and some rooms for events, you arrive in the main structure and enter a world of ornate woodwork, beautiful paintings, and eleven Swedish porcelain tile stoves spread throughout the rooms. 

In late February, I visited the American Swedish Institute to see the new exhibit “Paper Dialogues,” which is scheduled to run through July tenth. Paper-cutting and dragons are common in both Chinese and Nordic cultures. The main part of the exhibit is a conversation between Chinese professor and artist Xiaoguang Qiao and Danish artist Karin Bit Vejle. In both of their works, dragons play the leading role, and the beautiful patterns are displayed modestly in the paper. Bit’s works were the ones I remember the most: Her eggs of the past and future were a truly impressive and remarkably intricate combination of history, art, and social commentary.

The works’ theme of understated elegance and attention to detail carries through the whole building, from the sunroom to the panty. Frankly, if the Turnblad Mansion were my house, I think I would just live in the sunroom—its framing is pleasing to the eye, seeming natural and beautifully crafted at the same time. Even the servants’ areas, although less adorned with whimsical decoration, are representative of the Scandinavian design principle of combining functionality and beauty —something I think the Institute shows very well, especially with the present exhibit.